Vape Stores Cluster Around Schools In New Zealand w/ Ronan Payinda: May 07, 2025

This week, a study was launched which looked into the location of vape stores around schools in Aotearoa. In the study it was found that 44% of schools in New Zealand have a vape store within a one-kilometer radius, and that 13% have a dedicated store within 300 meters.

This is despite a legislation being passed by the government in 2023, which banned specialist vape stores from opening within 300 meters of schools and marae, the legislation however, allowed existing vape shops to continue operating.

Ronan Payinda, a fourth-year medical student at the University of Auckland, who led the study, says that he saw the explosion of vaping while he was at school in Northland, and felt that New Zealand was failing as a society to grapple with its potentially serious health effects.

To talk about this, Producer Max spoke with Ronan Payinda.